Re: How Sideshow Can do it next?
QUOTE:
"the Lawgiver is the only one of the seven to sell out, and did so in just 40 minutes. I think that the fact it was coming got leaked so early, has kept POTA collectors from picking up the regular version, and they waited for this one."
MWC, while this SEEMS to make sense, I have to disagree that this is what happened. For one thing, yes, the identity of the "Vision Lawgiver" leaked early ( I was actually the one who started the first thread about it, after it was listed in the "arriving in the next 30 days" portion of a March Newsletter). But we didn't know FOR SURE until May 31 what the "Vision Lawgiver" would actually be ( although we had guessed correctly); nor did we know what the edition size would be, or if it was one of the SDCC Exclusives. Also, the original Lawgiver statue had already been available for pre-sell for several months; I can't imagine too many people held off ordering that one to wait on the exclusive, not knowing any of the exact details. At that point, anyone remotely interested in the Lawgiver had probably already ordered one.
Then too, even after seeing the "Vision" statue, I think most die-hard "Apes" fans, given a choice between the two, would select the original statue if they only had room for one or the other in their collection ( after all, the "Vision" statue was only a mirage created by the mutants and appears in one scene of "Beneath", whereas the original statue is depicted in several scenes across the movie series, and would lend itself to more authentic displays). And remember, even though the "Vision" statue is a low edition size piece (100), the original didn't exactly have a huge production run ( 700 or 750, if I'm recalling correctly).
No, I have to conclude that the VAST MAJORITY of these were purchased by dealers, speculators, or collectors with the intention of re-selling for a profit, either to pocket or to help defray the cost of another exclusive. I believe that when they saw the extremely low edition size of 100, they assumed there would be a secondary market for these that would support inflated prices. Already, I have seen 4 of these up for sell on ebay. 2 of them started off with a "Buy-It-Now" of $259.99; after a couple days with no "bites", the sellers have lowered the BIN to $199.99, and as of this time they still haven't sold. (And regarding those 2 auctions, while on the surface they seem to be offered by 2 different sellers, "hugeworm" and "bloodymurray", they have the EXACT SAME layout, wording, and pictures, are both from sellers located in Arlington, Tx, and are obviously being sold by the same person, so it seems the "1 per person" limit hasn't been too difficult to circumvent for scalpers).
I don't think the actual interest in this piece is that great, I just think the perception is that it will command a high price on the secondary market, but I think we'll see the interest in this piece will be lukewarm at best. Myself, I am an "Apes completest", and want one for my collection solely because I love the POTA Movie series. I have the original statue, and through the kindness of a member of this board ( thanks, Tom!), I'm lucky enough to have the "Vision" statue secured, even though I tried (and failed) to get one through Sideshow's "Collect-At-Home" offer. Although it might be unrealistic, I hope that, ultimately, these all find their way into the hands of POTA fans at around the original cost.
It
Make everyone happy. It's just a matter of perspective and attitude. The thing being, it wont be like a regular release, it will be a Con exclusive.
Now rock theirs 
for SSC for trying harder than most companies to make people happy!
